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Topic: Sizing - I know this has been asked a million times and I'm so sorry!!! (Read 2453 times)

I've been wanting a Royal Enfield so badly that I cannot even stand it...I want one so bad, I'm losing my mind! I'm sure ya'll can relate :-)

I went to my local dealership (not trying to mention names) and they INSISTED an RE was too small of a bike for me. Guys...I'm a woman, barely 5'2 and I weigh 160lbs! I'll admit I'm not the thinnest girl on the planet, but my current bike is just for fun and it's a 125! Surely 500cc is PLENTY for me, no??

I was assuming the salesman was trying to get me to buy a bigger/more expensive bike, but the part that scared me, and the reason I'm posing here, is he told me if I was doing 60 MPH and needed to get out of the way of an oncoming car, I'd be toast. Because this is my first street bike, that obviously scared me quite a bit...mostly because I'm quoting him!

I live just outside of Austin, Texas and I plan on using this Enfield for fun, sunny day back road riding. I have no plans to EVER be on the interstate.

I know this salesman was wrong...but can you guys just calm my nerves a bit? Appreciate you taking the time to read this. Thank you in advance, what a wealth of information this site has been!

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

Hahahaha I'm sorry for laughing so hard on that, but that was hilarious!

I don't just WANT a Royal Enfield...I NEED a Royal Enfield *blush*

Or an old Vincent or an old BSA, but I'll start with an RE as I continue to save every single penny I make ;-)

Thank you so much for chiming in, I really do appreciate it.

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

MandyMarie:I think he was referring to the horsepower more than the actual size of the bike.IMO, horsepower is nice but it isn't the way to deal with an onrushing car.

From your description of the reason you want to buy a RE, it should be perfect for you.

After it is broken in it will cruise at 65 all day so riding it on the 50-55mph back roads is exactly what it was meant to do.

Although the horsepower isn't that great (28), the bikes high torque (engine twisting power) will allow it to out accelerate most of the cars on the street so "keeping up with traffic" isn't an issue. Especially for someone as light weight as you are. (We have several riders who weigh well over 220 pounds and they aren't having any problem).

Your short height might be an issue so by all means sit on the bikes to get a feel for their seat height. There are lower seats and shorter rear shocks available but at least one of our members still thinks the bike is too tall.I think the single seat C5 is a bit lower than the dual seat on the B5 and G5 but if these are available be sure to try them out too.

As for the new Unit Construction Engine (UCE) Royal Enfields they are proving to be well made, low maintenance, dependable motorcycles.They get fantastic fuel mileage (68-78 mpg), handle easily and quickly and garner attention wherever they go.

He was definitely pointing me toward the higher horsepower bikes - he kept pushing me towards the Triumph America, and I'm sure it's a fantastic bike, but in no way what I want.

The hardest part for me now is deciding WHICH one I like the best! Any street bike with a seat height below 29.5/30 inches seems like it will be good for me - I'm used to taller but lighter dirt bikes (thanks to having an AWESOME father! ) and I was shocked at how perfect each of the Enfields seemed to fit me/feel to me. I honestly felt right at home!

Here comes the tough part....figuring out which one I like best! There's a Bullet Sixty-5 for sale locally that I keep eyeing on Craigslist. I'm about to take a class on simple motorcycle engines (I want to know HOW it works - the Enfields make sense to me....most newer bikes make NO sense to me whatsoever), and with that Bullet being a 2004, the engine has me fasciated.

Thank you so much for chiming in, guys, I sincerely can't thank you enough! If you had to pick one of the Enfields as a first street bike for your girlfriend, wife, or daughter...which would you choose? xx

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

If you have a good basic knowledge of working on motorcycles like how to adjust the carburetor, adjust the valve clearances, adjust and set the ignition points and ignition timing as well as the common things like changing the oil, oil filter and spark plug and an electric starter is not desired the Sixty-5 will be a nice bike to own.(The electric starter on all of the pre 2009 Royal Enfields left a lot to be desired and often broke forcing the owner to use the kick starter).

On the other hand, if your knowledge is limited to checking tire pressure, changing the spark plug, the oil and oil filter and you think you would like a dependable electric starter (in addition to the kick starter) the new UCE models made from 2009 on would be the best choice (IMO).

That's exactly what I'm taking this class to learn...I want to know how to do things myself, and I want to know why what works WORKS. I don't know if it's against forum rules, if it is I apologize for the ignorance, but this bike in particular has 6,250 miles, has had two owners, and he's asking $3,300. It's a 2004 - and considering the class I'm taking - does this seem like a fair deal? I get anxious, a little over obsessive, and little-kid excited about things sometimes....I don't want to rush into it (and that's not easy for me). Appreciate your opinions and your time.

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

I'm already addicted. Hahahaha appreciate the advice so much, if that's what you guys say to do, that's what I'll try to do. I'm debating between buying new or used and I'm debating which model, but I'll make sure it's newer. I do want to learn...but right now it might be best to have fun while learning!

Thanks SO MUCH, guys!!!

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

All things being considered, you might want to start your Enfield-riding career out with a new C5 or G5, rather than the Craigslist Sixty-5... The maintenance work you'll do with a more modern Enfield (boy, does it feel weird to type that) is a lot easier than the older bike, plus you gain the advantage of a front disc brake, electronic ignition, and fuel injection. Once you've learned what there is to learn from your classes, you'll have a better idea about how motorbikes work and you can decide whether or not you want to go with a vintage British bike for your next bike.

I live in northwest Austin and work in Cedar Park. I have a 2012 C5 Military with matching sidecar. If you want to try one for sizing, I can try to arrange meeting you somewhere to "test fit" the bike. It is the standard height and will give an initial feel for how it will fit without worrying about it falling over.

I have no problems with running in traffic on 620 - hits 60-65 periodically. My sidecar rig manages just fine. A bike without sidecar would have a bit more margin. I'm 5'6" and about 200lbs. The C5 fits me just fine.

The UCE engine retains the vintage feel, but is far more reliable. Its response is great for the kind of riding you want to do. I got mine from Royal Enfield of Fort Worth. They were really good to deal with and did not try to steer me away from the RE, although they had been hoping to hang onto the particular sidecar rig I got as it was their center-piece at the DFW motorcycle expo (IMS).

You guys are the BEST!!!! Thank you so much for the warm welcome - y'all have made me want a RE even more....and I didn't think that was possible! I want to write so much, but my band is getting ready to gig here in a minute, and all I can say is THANKS SO MUCH! More tomorrow, hope y'all have a fantastic Sunday evening :-)

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

Mplayle, you have to be the sweetest man on the planet - can I take you up on that? Hahaha, your post made me so happy! I'm also going to private message you which dealer I went to - I realize a girl walking into a bike shop all alone may not be the norm, so I'm thinking he just thought he could scare me a bit and talk me into buying a more expensive bike. To be honest, it kind of worked...if I wasn't so in love with Royal Enfields and British styling, he might have scared me into buying something I didn't want.

I appreciate you guys so much. Thank you for being so welcoming.

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I'm just learning about motorbikes and motorbike engines; please be patient with me as I embrace this new obsession! And, I'm not a cheapskate...I just play music for a living, so I'm poor. There's a difference! ;-)

I, too, would advise against getting an iron barrel model. I had a Matchless 500 which was very similar to to the iron barrel Enfields in terms of required maintenance and I sold it several years ago because I got tired of remembering what the good old days were really like. To save yourself a maintenance hassle go with the UCEs. They are far less maintenance intensive, perform better and you get a 2 year warranty and unlimited mileage with those. AS for the B5, C5 and G5 conundrum, I doubt that you will be able to find a G5 as they are being discontinued, but if you can they actually have the lowest effective seat height. I have to check that myself as I am a bit a a squatty body myself! The bike is being discontinued. And it's a shame, I thought it was the best one! My first choice as actually a B5,but when I bought my G5, the B5s hadn't reached the dealers yet! As for the seats, the C5 and B5 are harder than the G5, so you don't sink down quite as far on the B/C. I found the seat very comfortable at 175 lbs, by my much heavier riding partner (230 lbs) had a problem hitting the bottom and it didn't work for him. Since it does give a bit more the effective seat height it does come out a bit better for me. However the other two are still usable.As for performance, believe me, they will blow the doors of your 125, so if your comfortable with the performance on that, you will be delirious with an Enfield.Unfortunately, most Enfield sales people and the dealers don't really know much about the bikes. I don't think they ever even ride them! And they know everyone has to have a bike that will do 0-60 in under 3 seconds and top out at 180 mph! There are some great dealers out there, don't get me wrong, but this guy doesn't sound like one of them. Might I suggest you take a little road trip up to Ft Worth and Dallas. The Fort Worth dealer is the biggest RE dealer in the US and the Dallas dealer is very knowlegeable, too. I can promise you that with the way you feel about the bikes now, you're love for that will grow immensely.They are wonderful bikes for those with the passion and disposition for them. You will be treated with more smiles/mile than you can experience on anything else!Welcome aboard and good luck with your search.Bare